? 

f[U  d^JL.^  P-J*"*  ^Tfg 


385 

•097% 
IT62? 
1869 


3  S  *' 


COL.  GEORGE  WASHINGTON  FLOWERS 
MEMORIAL  COLLECTION 


DUKE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
DURHAM,  N.  C. 


PRESENTED  BY 

W.  W.  FLOWERS 


To  the  Stockholders  of  tiie  Sarth  Carolina  Rail  Road  Company,* 
"    and  the  Atlantic  h  North  Carolina  Rail  Road  Company. 

New-Beiine,  N.  C,  April  30th,  1869. 

The  undersigned,  appointed  a  Comir5tr.ee  by  the  Board  of  pirecto'rfc  of  the  A,  &  N.  C.  H.  R.  to 
prepare,  ai  range  and  have  published  suitab'e  matter  for  distribution  a  thong  the  "Stockholders  of 
your  two  Companies,  would  respectfully  call  yourat  ention  to  au  Act  of  the  General  Assombly  of 
Noitb  Carolina,  in  relation  (o  the  C  maolidation  of  the  two  corporations  which  you  compose,  and 
likewise  to  a  letter  of  the  late  Hon.  .h  hn  M.  Morehead,  and  two^eommunicatiOns  from  other 
eminent  citizens  which  are  herewith  publL-hed. 

These  communicatic&s  present  an  array  of  facts  upon  the  subject  of  consolidation  of  the  deepest 
importance  to  the  peop'e  of  North  Caroling  ami  sho  v  clearly  to  evrery  unbiased  reader  the  necessity 
tor  the  measire  authorized  by  the  Act  r<  fened  to.  They  should  be  deeply  and  seriously  pondered, 
at  the  present  juncture,  as  the  lime  is  drawing  near  when  some  decided  action  muse  be  taken 
upon  this  greic  measure  upon  which,  perhaps,  may  hang  the  future  destiny  of  our  3 .ate,  in  a 
commercial  point  of  view. 

While  asking  a  careful  perusal  ot'  these  letters,  the  undersigned  desire  breefly  to  refer  to  tl  ie  advan- 
tages of  Beaufort  Harbor  on  our  coast  which  will  be  the  Easteru'terminusof  that  great  thoroughfare 
of  trade  and  travel  which  will  be  established  by  the  scheme  proposed.  Merchandise  transported 
from  the  hnerior,  destined  for  Morelnad  City,  is  now  carried  in  the  cars  of  the  A.  &  N.  C.  R  Road 
to  »  point  where  ic  is  delivered  from  the  cars  directly  on  board  of  a  ship  which  may  be  of  capicity 
KtifBc'enu  to  sail  to  any  port,  in  the  world.  "Within  thirty  minutes  after  the  ship  weigh.3  anchor,  she 
may  (if  the  weather  be  favorable)  discharge  her  pilot  at  sea.  A  beautiful  Roadstead  lies  imme- 
<i  lately  in  front  of  the  Depot  and  extends  directly  to  the  sea.  Along  this  Roadstead  two  hundred 
vessels!  large  and  small,  may  ride  at  anchor  in  safety  dining  the  severest  Atlantic  storms. '  In 
Januaty,  1863.  a  Unit  d  -ta.es  fleet,  composed  of  steamers,  barques,  and  schooners,  rode, at  anchor 
there  tormirg  a  I  eaut'iful  line,  three  miles  in  length,  of  more  than  one  hundred  vessels.  In  that 
suite  winter  two  noble  steamers,  the  Mi-sissippi  and  the  Merriiuac,  entered  there  and  lay  at  anchor 
in  thi<  same  chaniK  l,  each  of  them  bearing  iwo  thousand  tons  burthen,  and  measuring  two  hundrtd 
and  eighty  fees  in  length.  Vessels  ranging  from  tne  thousand  to  fi  I  teen  hundred  tons  bun  hen 
frequently  visited  this  port  during  the  lace  war.  The  History  of  the  bar  i-hows  that  froTi  the  days 
of  Wimble's  survey  (1788)  to  tiie  present  time,  with  the  excepi ion  of  slight  oc3asional  changes,  it 
has  preserved  a  uui  onn  dehth  (.if  water.  In  connection  witn  these  great  advantages,  we  are  con- 
strained to  call  your  spec  a!  attention  to. the  salubrity  of  the  atmosphere.  Tnis  advantage  cannot 
he  over  e^.timaied.  la  hi*ltrhfuh,e-s  eyeiy  point  on  the  harbor  will  compate'  favorably  with  any 
pi  tee  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  But  with  such  advantages  it  may  be  asked  why  a  profitable  com- 
merce has  not,  i-priiitiz  up  at  this  port  under  the  influence  of  the  A.  &  N.  C.  R.  Road?  We  answer, 
tor  the  want  of  this  very  measure  of  Coosolidafon.  Produce  and  travel  which  should  have  found 
th..ir  way  to  North  Carolina  pons  have  been  diverted  to  other  poinfs.  A  good  deal  has  been  said 
'  about  the  huh  insurance  to  which  shipments  from  and  to  this  port  have  been  subjected.  The 
present  raie,  we  brliev-p,  is  one  per  ceutum  ;  but  we  have  the  assurance  that  upon  the  establish- 
iiuiitof  a  line  of  first  cLts->  s'eamers  io  run  between  this  port  and  New  Yoik,  (he  certain  result  of 
Co'  solidation)  insurance  will  be  reduced  to  one-half  of  one  per  centum. 

We  are  constrained  to  bcl  eve  ih  it  until  the  original  plan  conceived  by  the  late  Dr.  Caldwell( 
fori y  years  ago,  of  having  one  great  Consolidated  hue  of  Railway,  c  mnecting  Eastern  with  Wes- 
tien  North  C >roliha  shall  be  executed,  the  grand  results  anticipated  by  that  great  man  and  other 
friends  of  the  Slate,  from  her  works  of  internal  impiovement  will  never  be  realized. 

We  are,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servants, 

E.  R.  STANLY. 

C.  R.  THOMAS, 

R.  F.  LEHMAN, 

A.  G.  HUBBARD, 

JAMES  RUMLY, 

WM.  B.  DUNCAN, 

W.  DUNN, 

R.  W.  KING,  ,  r 

M.  F.  ARENDALL,     ^  Committee* 

A.  C.  DAVIS, 
ISAAC  RAMSY, 
JULIUS  A.  GRAY, 
R  F.  PARROTT, 
WM.  P.  GRIMSLY, 
M.  E.  MANLY, 
J.  H.  HAUGHTON. 


An  Act  to  be  entitled  an  Act  to  Consolidate  the  Atlantic  and 
North  Carolina  Eail  Eoad  Company  and  the  North  Carolina 
Eail  Eoad  Company. 

Section  1.. The  General  Assembly  of  North, Carolina  do  enact,  That  the  At'antic  and  North 
Carolina  Rail  R  *ad  Company,  chartered  at  the  session  of  the  General  As-embly  in  1852,  and  the 
North  Carolina  Rail  Road  C  >mpany,  ch  rtered  in  1848  '49,  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowtred 
to  Consolidite  so  as  to  form  aud  C"nstitute  one  Company,  with  .the  corporate  name  and  style  of  the 
North  Carolina  CeDtral  Rail  R  >ad  Company,  and  when  the  Consolidation  of  tne  two  Compa*  ies 
aforesaid  shall  have  been  consummated  in  the  manner  hereafter  prescribed,  the  North  Carolim 
Central  Rail  Road  Company,  extending  from  Beau'ort  Harbor,  North  Carolina,  to  the  town  of 
Charlotte,  North  Carolina,  shall  be  invested  wiih  all  the  powers,  rign  s,  immunities,  prlvileg-  s  and 
franchises  conferred  on  the  first  named  corp  >ration,  in  and  by  an  Act  entitled  an  Act  to  iuco;  porate 
the  Atlantic  and  N  »rth  Caro'ina  Kail  Road  <'ompiny,  aud  the  North  Carolim  and  We-te-u  Rail 
Road  C>mpmy.  ratified  the  2Tih  day  of  December,  A.  I).  1852,  and  by  any  amendments  thereof, 
and  also  with  all  the  lights,  powers,  immunities,  priv. leges  and  franchises  conferred  on  the  s-cmd 
named  corporation,  by  an  Act  entitled  an  Act.  to  incorpoiaie  the  North  C.roliua  Rail  Rnad  com- 
pany, ratified  the,  27th  of  January,  A  D.  1849,  and  by  any  amendments  thereof,  and  all  the  prop- 
erty owned  or  acquired  by  either  of  s  id  c  r:wations,  shall  be  taken  to  be  the  juiut  property  of 
the  State  and  the  Stockholders  of  the  wo  compani-s  as  hereafter  prescribed. 

Sec.  2.-  That  at  the  first  meeting  of  the  Stockholders  of  the  corporation  afoesa.i  1,  a  majo-ity  of 
the  stock  being  represented  in  person  or  by  proxy,  each  of  *aid  companies i-hall  decide  by  a 
majority  of  votes,  according  to  the  method  prescribed  in  us  charter,  in  favor  of,  or  against  the 
Consolidation  and  Union  of  ihe  two  companies  a-'oret-aid,  and  if  said  companies  small  deride  in  favor 
of  consolidation,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  re- pective  Stockholders  to  dx  and  agree  ii  ton  the  terms 
and  conditions  of  their  consolidation,  by  a  valuation  of  the  stoek,  property,  rights,  inim  unities, 
franchises  and  privileges  of  each,  and  for  this  purpose  each  corporation  may  appoint  a  eommiueo 
of  three  Stockholders,  whose  action  shall  be  submitted  to  the  decision  of  the  Stockholders  of  each 
company;  the  union  of  the  two  companies  aforesaid  shall  be  consummated  upon  the  basis  of  uiis 
Viluation,  and  upon  such  terms  and  m  such  mamer  as  the  majority  of  Stockholders  of  i-ach  com- 
pany may  agree  upon,  anlafter  iheir  un;on  and  consolidation  is  completed,  all  the  property,  ml 
personal  and  mixed,  an  ,1  all  the  powers,  rights,  privileges,  immunities  and  franchises  of  the 
two  corporations,  conferred  by  their  respective  charters,  and  the  various  amendments  thereof, 
shallvest  and  be  conferred  on  the  united  corporations,  under  the  name  and  style  of  the  Nftrtii. 
Carolina  Central  Rail  Road  Company,  and  shall  "fljftong  to  the  Stockholders  thereof. 

Sec.  3.  That  upon  the  union  of  said  companies  in  the  manner  prescribed,  the  individual 
stockholders  of  said  North  Carolina  Central  Rail  Road  company,  shall  have  rho  right  to  elect 
four  Directors  as  prescribed  in  the  charter  of  the  North  Carolina  Rail  Road  company,  and  the 
State  shall  be  entitled  to  eight  Director,-;,  to  be  appointed  by  the  Governor  of  ma  State,  who 
shall  manage  the  affairs  of  the  said  North  Carolina  Central  Rail  Road  company.  A  majority 
of  *aid  board  of  directors  shall,  out  of  their  number,  elect  a  President  of  the  cohipany. 

Sec.  4.  That  the  corporate  power  of  the  said  North  Carolina  Central  Rail  Road  company, 
shall  continue  and  be  in  force  for  ninety  years  from  the  time  of  the  union  and  consolidation  of 
the  said  Rail  Road.  » 

Sec.  5.  That  the  two  corporations  aforesaid  shall  have  the  period  of  two  years  in  which  to 
negotiate,  establish  and  settle  the  terms  of  their  union  and  consolidation,  and  their  failure  to 
consummate  the  union  of  said  companies,  shall  not  be  considered  final  until  the  expiration  of 
the  said  period  of  two  years.from  the  ratification  of  this  act. 

Sec.  6.  No  discrimination  shall  be  made  by  the  North  Carolina  Central  Rail  Road  company, 
in  rates  and  charges  for  the  carrying  of  passengers  and  freights  over  an y  part  of  said  road, 
but  the  rates  charged  for  freight  and  travel  between  intermediate  points,  and  between  either 
terminus  and  any  intermediate  point,  shall  be  the  same  per  mile  as  the  rates  charged  for  travel 
or  for  like  classes  aud  qualities  of  freights  on  the  whole  line  of  said  road;  Provided,  That  the 
rates  shall  apply  to  the  line  of  said  road  only,  and  not  to  through  rates  in  connection  with  otlrsr 
lines  of  transportation.  Provided,  further,"  That  the  said  company,  in  addition  to  the  rates 
per  mile  charged  for  the  carrying  of  passengers  and  freights  over  the  whole  line  of  said  road, 
may,  for  the  carrying  of  passengers  and  freights  of  like  classes  and  quantities  between  inter- 
mediate points,  and  between  either J^rminus,  and  any  intermediate  point,  charge  the  follow- 
ing and  no  other:  For  any  distafSs  un-cLir  fifty  miles  not  exceeding  twenty-five  per  cent. ;  for 
any  "distance  over  fifty  and  under  one  hnnflred  miles,  not  exceeding  twenty  per  cent. ;  for  any 
distance  over  one  hundred  and  not  exceeding  two  hundred  miles,  not  exceeding  fifteen  per 
cent. ;  any  distance  over  two  hundred  and  not  exceeding  three  hundred  miles,  ten  per  cent. 
Provided"  further,  That  the  incurred  rates,  herein  authorized  between  intermediate  points,  and 
between  either  terminus  and  any  intermediate  point  shall  be  equal  on  all  parts  of  said  road; 
and  if  any   officer  or  agent  of  said  company  shall  violate  the  provisions  of  this  soction,"  any 


person  injured  or  suffering  loss  thereby  may  sue.  the  company,  or  such  officer  or  agent,  in  any 
Court  having  jurisdiction  of  tne  cause,  and  recover  his  actual  damages  and  costs,  and  in  addi- 
tion thereto  shall  recover  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars,  as  liquidation  and  settled  damages. 

Sec.  7  This  act  shall  be  in  force  from  and  after  its  ratification. 

Ratified  the  1st  day  of  February,  1869. 

•        State  or  Noeth  Carolina,  Office  Seoeetaey  of  State,  j 
Raleigh,  February  12th,  1869.      f 
I,  Henry  J.  Menninger,  Secretary  of  State,  hereby  clrtify  that  the  foregoing  is  a  true  copy  of 
the  original  act  on  file  in  this  office. 

H.  J.  MENNINGER, 

Secretary  of  State. 


Communication  from  Governor  John  M.  Moreliead. 

[From  the  proceedings  of  the  Seventeenth  Annual  Meeting  of  the  'Stockholders  of  the  North 
Carolina  Bail  Road  Company,  July  17th.  1866.] 

To  the  Stockholders  of  the  North  Carolina  Rail  Road: 

The  wise  and  sagacious  statesmen  who  have  taken  thought  as  to  the  best  im- 
provement tq  develope  the  exhaustless  resources  ami  increase  the  wealth  of  North 
Carolina,  have  uniformly  agreed  upon«the  one  great  work  to  effect  that  object,  to 
wit :  One  great  leading  trunk  line  of  railway  from  the  magnificent  harbor  of 
Beaufort  to  the  Tennessee  line. 

The  great,  wise  and  patriotic  philospher  and  statesman,  Dr.  Joseph  Caldwell, 
made  this  improvement  the  subject  of  his  thought  by  day  and  his  meditation  by 
night.'  His  visit  to  Europe  and  observations  there,  quickened  his  zeal  and 
aroused  his  interest  in  the  work  to  enthusiasm.  His  thoughts  and  his  counsels 
on  that  subject  he  has  left  on  record  for  our  benefit.  He  is  gone.  The  scheme, 
and  his  views  on  that  scheme,  survive.  The  great,  good  and  wise  Gaston  no  less 
zealously  advocated  this  great  work. 

Charter  after  charter',  by  the  influence  of  these  great  men,  was  granted  to  effect 
the  work,  but  the  gigantic  work  was  thought  to  be  too  much  for  the  limited 
means  the  State  and  her  citizens  could  then  command^  and  the  charters  remain 
monuments  of  their  wisdom  and  our  folly  or  inability  to  carry  them  out.  A 
more  successful  plan,  it, is  hoped,  was  finally  adopted — to  do  this  great  work  by 
sections. 

The  North  Carolina  Railroad,  your  section,  was  the  first  undertaken.  The 
contracts  on  that  road  required  contractors  to  begin  on  the  1st  of  January,  1852, 
and  to  finish  their  contracts  on  or  before  the  1st  of  January,  1856.  On  the  29th 
of  January,  1856,  the  road-bed  was  ready  for  the  passage  of  trains  frobi 
CharTotte  to  Goldsboro',  a  distance  of  233  mnles.  -'  In  the 'meantime  other  charters 
were  granted  for  sections  of  this  great  work,  and  the  17th  of  June,  1858,  found 
the  road-bed  of  the  Atlantic  and  North  Carolina  Railroad  ready  for  trains  from 
Goldsboro'  to  Beaufort  Harbor,  and  a  few  months  thereafter  found  the  trains 
running  to  within  a  few  miles  or  Morganton  on  the  Western  Extension,  with  the 
whole  route  surveyed  to  the  Tennessee  line,  and  considerable  progress  made  in 
grading  beyond  Murganton,  which  by  the  line  of  the  survey  for  the  road  is  distant 
trom  the  Tennessee  line  by  the  French  Broad  route,  some  110  miles,  and  by  the 
D nekton  route  some  few  miles  more. 

Here  let,  us  pause  and  take  a  survey  of  what  has  been  done  in  seven  years 
towards  this  great  work. 

From  Beaufort  Harbor  to  Goldsboro',  the  Atlantic  &  North  Carolina  Railroad 
Company  have  built  96  miles.  From  Goldsboro'  to  Charlotte  you  (the  North 
Carolina  Railroad)  have  built  223  miles. 

From  Salisbury  to  within  4  miles  of  Morganton  the  Western  North  Carolina 
Railroad  have  built  76  miles,  besides  a  large  amount  of  grading  ready  or  nearly 
so  for  the  superstructure,  making  in  all  395  miles,  from  which  dedufet  43  miles, 
from  Salisbury  to  Charlotte,  and  we  have  actually  built  of  this  great  line  352 
miles  in  one  continuous  line. 

P34289' 


Think  of  it  I  Seven  years ! !  In  the  lifetime  of  a  State  or  nation,  seven  years 
is  but  as  a  moment  in  its  existence.  It  would  not  cover  the  dawning  of  its  infancy. 
In  the  great  day  of  a  nation's  improvements,  seven  years  would  not  be  the  sun- 
rise of  that  day.  We  have  done  £his  great  work  in  the  twilight  of  our  great  day 
of  Internal  Improvement — a  day  which  dawned  so  beautifully  upon  us,  but  which 
became  enveloped  in  that  gloom  which  shrouds  the  nation  in  mourning. 

But  let  us  despair  not.  That  day  which  dawned  so  beautifully  upon  us  will 
yet  reach  its  meridian  splendor.  Then  let  us  be  up  and  doing  that  which,  we 
'et£    this,  would   have   done,  but  for  circumstances  we  could  not  control. 

Already  Tennessee  is  pushing  an  arm  of  her  Virginia  and  Tennessee  Road 
from  Morristown  to  the  North  Carolina  line  at  Paint  Rock.  She  will  shortly 
connect  Cleveland  with  her  Ducktown  copper  mines  and  the  North  Carolina  line 
near  that  place.  Shall  we  meet  our  lovely  daughter  at  the  line  and  welcome  her 
to  the  maternal  bosom?  Surely,  we  will,  and  then  the  hopes,  the  dreams  of  the 
great  and  good  Cald"well  and  Gaston  will  be  realized. 

The  trade  of  Memphis  will  find  its  nearest  and  best  Atlantic  port  at  Beaufort 
Harbor.  JEast  Tennessee  will  find  herself  within  Jess  than  a  day's  travel  of  the, 
same  port,  while  the  exhaustless  mines  of  Ducktown  and  our  own  mountains  of 
minerals  will  crowd  our  freighted  trains  beyond  their  capacity  for  transportation. 

Can  we  do  it?  Yes  ! !  And  we  will,  if  your  powerful  body  will  only  say  the 
word  and  the  Legislature  will  permit  you  to  do  it. 

You  have  the  honor  of  being  the  pioneers  in  this  great  work,  executed  in  sec- 
tions. Do  yourselves  now  the  honor  to  consolidate  the  whole  and  complete  the 
original  design.  You,  the  most  powerful  and  most  independent  of  thtJ  three 
corporations,  can,  with  much  grace,  propose  to  your  sister  corporations  consoli- 
dation upon  terms  of  justice  and  equity,  manifesting  selfishness  i-i  naught  bur, 
your  name.  Yield  not  that.  'The  new  consolidated  corporation  should  be  st.ll 
"The  North  Carolina  Railroad  Company."  This  will  be  a  corporation,  worthy  of 
you,  of  your  State  and  of  the  great  destinies  that  await  it. 

It  has  been  proposed  to  permit  the  western  section  to  go  into  hands  tint  wiil 
complete  it.  Resist  the  proposition  with  all  your  might,  strength  and  iutluence, 
except  it  be  to  bring  it  unto  the  consolidated  corporation.  Let  no  .corporation 
stand  between  you,  and  the  trade  of  the  vast  West,  within  you  own  State. 

You  may  ask,  will  the  consolidated  corporation  be  able  to  complete  the  line.  Un- 
questionably it  will.  It  will  be  a  corporation  possessed  of  property  already  costing  some 
eight  or  nine  millions  of  dollars,  well  and  cheaply  invested.  The  consolidated  debt  of 
all  these  corporations  will  be  a  mere  trifle  compared  with  its  ability  to  pay,  and  with 
its  great  capital  and  large  income  it  Avill  meet  with  but  little  difficulty  in  raising  the 
means  to  defray  present  indebtedness  and  to  cemplete  the  line.  And  when  comfJieted, 
who  can  predict  the  vast  consequences  resulting  from  its  completion  ? 

I  desire  to  put  the  prediction  upon  record,  as  I  now  do,  that  if  this  scheme  of  con- 
solidation is  successsully  carried  out,  that  in  less  than  five  years  after  its  completion, 
the  net  income  of  a  single  year  will  pay  every  debt  now  owed  by  the  three  corpora- 
tions ;  that  the  net  income  of  the  next  two.  successive  years  will,  pay  the  whole  cost  of* 
the  completion  of  the  road  to  the  Tennessee  line  by  the  nearest  route  ;  and  the  next 
year  or  two  years'  net  profit  will  pay  the  whole  cost  of  the  road  from  the  fork  to  the 
Tennessee  line  by  the*  other  route ;  which  will  be  the  more  direct  and  profitable  line — 
the  construction  of  both  of  which  lines,  in  due  time,  I  would  most  earnestly  recom- 
mend. 

I  take  it  for  gaanted,  opposition  to  the  consolidation  of  the  roads  will  arise.  To 
witness  the  struggle,  of  the  lines  now  connecting  with  your  road,  for  the  little  strag- 
gling freight  that  now  passes  over  it,  is  presumptive  evidence  that  they  will  resist 
consolidation,  lest  all  the  freight  will  pass  directly  to  the  ocean  by  your  own  line. 
Heed  them  not !  Consult  only  the  great  interest  of  your  own  State  and  of  yourselves 
and  thereby  you  will  consult  even  the  interests  of  these  opposing  lines,  if  they  but 
knew  it. 

The  drippings  and  leakage,  by  the  wayside  of  this    great,    overtaxed  freight    trunk 


line  will  give  them  more  freight  than  your  whole  road  now  yields  them..  Besides, 
this  higgling  and  underbidding  about  the  price  of  freight  will  cease. 

With  this  great  freight  line  terminating  on  your  own  excellent  harbor,  what  com- 
mercial advantages  may  we  not  hope  for? 

But  there  are  those  who  pretend  to  doubt  the  capacity  of  our  harbor  for  extended 
commerce.  Refer  such  sceptics  to  the  fleet  of  upwards  of  three  hundred  war  vessels 
and  transports  which  so  lately  rode  safely  on  its  bosom.  Our  own  lines  of  weekly 
and  monthly  steamers  will  cany  our  own  produce,  in  our  own  vessels,  from  our  owl. 
port  across  the  Atlantic. 

We  shall  then  avoid  those  wasting  exactions  made  a*  the  North  in  the  charges 
for  freight,  fire  insurance,  marine  insurance,  advertising,  city  taxes,  wharfage. 
drayageb  storage  and  labor,  with. th^  commissions  on  the  whole,  which  often 
leaves  scarcely  enough  to  pay  the  express  company  for  bringing  back  what  they 
foot  up  as  "net  proceeds." 

With  this  great  trunk  line  in  full  operation,  a  weekly  line,  of  steamers  could 
find  continual  employment  to  foreign  ports.  And,  if  to  its  interests  to  do  so,  this 
powerful  corporation  could  establish  the  line  in  a  few  years  by  its  own  means. 

Should  you  doubt  the  policy  of  embarking  in  the  construction  of  the  Western 
Extension  at  this  time,  consolidate  the  two  Roads  already  completed  and  witness 
the  advantages  derived  therefrom. 

Doubtless  the  Legislature  will  grant  the  desired  charter,  if  a  Committee  of 
your  body  were  to  ask  for  it,  in  your  behalf,  and  your  eastern  friends  of  the 
Atlantic  and  North  Carolina  Railroad  would  leap  for  joy  at  the  prospect  of  so 
much  freight  crowding  their  road. 

It  will  take  some  time  to  get  the  matter  judiciously  arranged  and  the  sooner 
the  subject  is  agitated,  the  sooner  action  will  take  place  upon  it. 

Very  respectfully  your  obedient  servant,  J.  M.  MOREHEAD. 


[JProm  the  North    Carolina,  Standard.] 

Railroad  Consolidation. 

Messrs.  Editors  : — I  observe  that  a  bill  has  been  introduced,  in  the  Senate, 
having  for  its  object  the  consolidation  of  the  Atlantic  and  North  Carolina  Rail- 
road, and  the  North  Carolina  (or  Central)  Railroad  ;  and  as  I  consider  it  one  of 
the  most  important  measures  that  has  yet  engaged  the  attention  of  the  Legisla- 
ture, I  beg  leave  to  submit  a  few  considerations  whv  the  bill  should  pass. 

When  each  of  these  Roads  was  proposed,  and  a  subscription  on  the  part  of 
the  State  was  asked,  the  inducement  was  held  out,  arid  appeal  was  made  to  the 
patriotism  of  citizens  as  well  as  legislators,  on  the  ground  that  jt  would  be  a 
grand  trunk  road,  and  that  it  would  build  up  a  port,  in  the  State  ;  that  it  was  a 
realization  of  the  well-considered  scheme  of  those  illustrious  friends  and  advocates 
of  progress  and  internal  improvement  in  North  Carolina,  Joseph  Caldwell  and 
William  Gaston.  The  weight  of  their  honored  names  was  given  to  the  enter- 
prise. The  writings  of  the  one,  and  the  speeches  of  the  other"  were  quoted,  and 
the  cry  then  was  Beaufort  and  the  mountains  !  The  measure  was  carried  against 
strenuous  opposition — millions  of  dollars  were  appropriated  by  the  Legislature, 
and  expended.  The  roads  were  built,  and  what  do  we  see?  So  far  as  com- 
mercial intercourse  is  concerned,  Beaufort  is  as  far  from  the  mountains  as  even- 
Tim  intention  of  the  builders  of  the  roads  are  frustrated  by  want  of  concert  of 
action  in  the  management  of  those  improvements.  If  you  doubt  it,  send  a  barrel 
of  potatoes  from  Raleigh  to  a  friend  at  Morehead  City,  or  try  to  get  a  barrel  of 
fish  from  Beaufort  to  Salisbury,  and  you  will  find  that  by  using  the  Virginia 
railroads,  you  can  get  it  as  cheaply  and  as  expeditiously  from  New  York.  Why(is 
tins?  Simply  because  every  facility  is  given  to  running  in  connection  with  Virginn,- 
railroads,  and  every  impediment  and  obstacle  thrown  in  the  way  of  freight  going 


P34289 


to  or  coming  from  a  North  Carolina  port.  As  things  are  now  managed  your 
freights  going  to  or  coming  from  New-Berne  or  Morehead  City,  gets  to  Gold1- 
boro',  where  it  is  stopped  until  it  can  be  moved  from  the  cars  of  one  company  to 
those  of  another.  By  this  management,  freight  which  leaves  Morehead  or  New- 
Berne  in  the  morning,  and  should  reach  Raleigh  in  the  afternoon  of  the  same 
day,  is  commonly  three  days  in  reaching  its  destination.  Now  this  would 
be  obviated  if  both  roads  were  under  one  and  the  same  management,  and  worked 
in  concert. 

Again,  if  this  consolidation  of  management  and  interests  were  brought  about, 
a  trade  would  flow  to  New-Berne  and  Morehead  which  would  soon  give  employ- 
ment to  a  daily  line  of  steamers  to  the  city  of  New  York.  Do  you  ask  "where 
are  the  steamers  to  come  from?"  I  reply  that  with  so  good  and  safe  a  harbor  as 
Morehead  City,  private  enterprise  and  Northern  capital  will  furnish  the  steamers 
as  soon  as  the  trade  will  justify  it.  All  the  freighls.  both  outgoing  and  incoming 
would  go  by  that  route,  because  it  is  the  shortest,  the  most  direct  and  consequent- 
ly the  cheapest.  This  would  be  particularly  true  of  heavy  freights,  as  they  nat- 
urally seek  water  by  the  shortest  route,  for  on  going  aboard  ship  they  are  charged 
according  to  bulk  and  not  by  weight.  In  addition  to  this,  every  railroad  man 
will  tell  you  that  a  road  daily  freighted  to  its  full  capacity,  can  put  freights  down 
to  a  much  lower  figure  than  one  where  the  freights  are  fluctuated  in  quantity. 

If  the  products  of  the  State,  in  the  counties  naturally  tributary  to  these  roads,  were 
carried  over  their  whole  length,  they  would  give  them  employment.  Men  of  capital 
and  enterprise  would  be  attracted  to  Morehead  and  settle  there;  and  the  day  would 
not  be  distant  before  that  port,  never  obstructed  by  ice,  and  in  a  climate  where  a 
rigorous  winter  does  not  obstruct  business,  in  a  direct  line  between  Memphis  and 
Liverpool,,  would  be  the  port  from  which  the  cotton  of  the  Mississippi  would  be  ex- 
ported, at  a  less  expense,  and  reaching  in  European  market  sooner  than  from  any  other 
in  the  United  States.  Saving  in  time  and  distance  involve  a  saving  in  interest  on  the 
money  value  of  the  crops,  and  enhance,  their  value. 

But  we  should  not  only  build  up  a  port,  but  we  should  open  the  way  for  many  in- 
dustrial pursuits  which  are  not  now  attempted  in  this  State.  We  count!  supply  the 
Northern  cities  with  the  earliest  and  latest  fruits  and  vegetables,  and  lands  lying  along 
the  line  of  the  roads  would  be  eagerly  sought  for  truck-farms,  and  as  the  returns  from 
such  farms  come  much  oftener  than  those  of  staple-raising  farms,  many  men  whose 
capital  is  small  could  go  into  that  business  who  are  now  unable  to  farm. 

The  expenses  of  the  consolidated  roads  would  be  much  less  than  under  the  present 
management.  Then  we  should  have  one  President  instead  of  two,  and  one  Superin- 
tendent instead  of  two,  one  principal  shop  for  building  cars  and  making  extensive 
repairs,  instead  of  two,  and  so  on.  Then  every  inducement  would  be  offered,  and 
every  exertion  made  to  have  freight  go  along  the  whole  line  of  the  road,  instead  of 
offering  a  premium  to  shippers  to  send  it  by  other  routes.  All  the  money  paid  out 
for  land  freights  would  be  retained  in  the  State,  and  go  to  enrich  our  own  citizens, 
and  add  to  the  wealth  of  the  State,  instead  of  going  abroad.  Consolidation  is  popular 
in  other  States,  and  it  is  found  that  the  longest  roads  are  the  most  profitable  because 
they  can  be  operated  at  the  least  expense  and  with  the  most  certainty   and  reliability. 

Our  railroads  ought  to  pay  large  dividends  to  the  State  on  the  stock  owned  by  it, 
and  to  relieve  the  treasury  from  a  heavy  burden  ;  but  instead  of  that  they  barely  pay 
expenses  and  do  not  declare  any  dividends. 

As  a  stockholder  in  the  North  Carolina  Railroad  I  desire  to  see  this  measure  fully 
and  fairly  tried.  I  hope  to  see  the  days  when  a  car  locked  at  Charlotte  will  not  be 
opened  until  it  arrives  at  the  wharf  at  Morehead  City  ;  and  then,  if  the  resusts  do  not 
answer  expectations,  we  can  easily  fall  back  upon  the  plan  which  is  now  in  operation, 
of  forsaking  our  own  ports  and  seeking  those  of  other  States. 

A  Stockholdeb 
In  the  North  Carolina  Railroad. 


CONSOLIDATION 

OF    THE 

Atlantic  &  N.  C.  E.  E.  Co.  and  the  N.  C.  E.  E.  Co. 


North  Carolina  is  capable  of  becoming  a 
great  commercial  State,  and  her  system  of 
railroad  improvement  ought  to  be  enlarged, 
perfected  and  managed  upon  this  view,  and 
to  this  end.  This  thought  has  been  here- 
tofore often  expressed  by  great  and  leading 
men,  who  were  alive  to  the  welfare  and  in- 
terest of  the  State,  and  who  were  ready  to 
aid  unselfishly  in  carrying  it  into  practical 
Operation.  It  is  now  uppermost  in  the 
minds  of  the  people,  who  desire  and  look  to 
the  future  substantial  and  permanent  growth 
in  population,  wealth  and  usefulness  of  then- 
State.  A  just  and  worthy  State  pride  cher- 
ishes it.  Every  native  North  Carolinian, 
and  every  one  who  comes  to  make  the  State 
a  home  for  himself  and  his  children  and  be 
a  North  Carolinian,  wishes  to  see  this 
thought  now  carried  out,  and  is  now  look- 
ing to  the  action  in  this  direction  of  the 
present  General  Assembly  with  the  deepest 
interest. 

The  "  bill  to  consolidate  the  Atlantic  and 
North  Carolina  Railroad  Company  and  the 
North  Carolina  Railroad  Company,"  so  as  to 
authorize  the  formation  of  one  "  North  Car- 
olina Central  Railroad  Company,"  if  passed, 
will  lead  ultimately,  surely  to  the  building 
up  of  a  great  seaport  city  in  the  State,  to  a 
combination  of  capital  and  population  and 
influence  which  will  be  felt  for  good  in  our 
coming  history.  The  passage  of  the  bill 
will  be  but  a  first  step  which  the  State  will 
take  forward,  never  to  take  it  again  back- 
ward, in  the  right  direction,  beyond  the 
little  local  jealousies  and  apparently  con 
flicting  interests  of  its  own  people  who 
would  "  diversify"  and  waste  and  ruin  her 
and  their  own  prospects  and  hopes,  and 
away  from  the  grasp  ot  avaricious  men  and 
States  bleeding  her  as  a  sickly,  dependent 
territory  between  Virginia  and  South  Car- 
olina. 

With  regret  I  have  read,  recently,  commu- 
nications in  your  paper  from  the  President 
of  the  North  Carolina  Railroad  Company 
and  from  anonymous  correspondents,  inten- 
ded, perhaps,  though  little  calculated,  to  de- 
feat this  great  measure.  I  do  not  wish  to 
dispute  with  them.  I  respectfully  suggest  to 
them  a  more  decent  respect  for  the  opinions 
of  such  men  as  Caldwell,  Morehead,  Gaston 
and  Murphy,  who  lived  and  died  with  op- 
posite and  better  views— views  more  worthy 


of  the  study  of  our  intelligent  and  unselfish 
people.  They  are  mistaken,  and  perhaps 
misled,  for  want  of  that  which  these  great 
men  possessed, — enlarged  and  liberal  minds 
and  a  clear  judgment  unwarped  by  party  or 
sectional  jealousy,  prejudices,  passion  or  in- 
terest—on the  subject  of  their  State's  im- 
provement. Gov.  Morehead,  in  his  commu- 
nication to  the  stockholders  of  the  N.  C. 
Railroad  in  July,  1866,  (which  should  be 
read  by  every  friend  of  internal  improve- 
ment in  the  State)  has  written  :  "  the  wise 
and  sagacious  statesmen  who  have  taken 
thought  as  to  the  best  improvement  to  de- 
velop the  exhaustless  resources  and  increase 
the  wealth  of  North  Carolina,  have  uniform- 
ly agreed  upon  the  one  great  work  to  effect 
that  object,  to-wit :  one  great  leading 
trunk  line  of  railway  from  the  magnificent 
harbor  of  Beaufort  to  the  Tennessee  line." 
And  I  would  quote  also  his  fitting  language 
for  the  friends  against  the  opponents  of 
'•consolidation."  "Heed  them  not.  Consult 
only  the  great  interest  of  your  State  and  of 
yourselves,  and  thereby  you  will  consult  even 
the  interests  of  those  opposing  it.  if  they 
but  knew  it." 

This  great  friend  and  untiring  worker  for 
improvement  in  North  Carolinp,  whose  lat- 
ter life  was  given  to  building  up  his  State's 
material  prosperity,  had  not,  as  your  "Rad- 
ical Railroad"  correspondent  imagines, 
"Beaufort  on  the  brain,"  but  he  had  rather 
North  Carolina  on  the  brain,  frwm  which 
sprang  into  full  life  and  vigor  her  manliest 
form  ot  internal  improvement, — the  North 
Carolina  Railroad.  Though  dead,  he  yet 
speaks  to  the  present  General  Assembly 
"  consolidate  your  broken  and  divided  lines 
of  trunk  railway  and  realize  the  predictions 
of  greatness  and  prosperity  for  the  State, 
which  I  made,  and  which  I  desired — but 
lived  not  to  witness."  I  commend  his 
views  to  the  opponents  of  consolidation 
and  the  views  of  President  Caldwell  who 
probably  was  not  embarrassed  in  his  inves- 
tigations of  truth  in  relation  to  State  internal 
improvement  by  any  side  questions  as  to 
who  should  be  President  of  his  grand  State 
railway;  what  particular  city,  town  or 
neighborhood,  whose  parcel  of  land  or  spec- 
ulative interest  might  be  benefited;  nor  by 
any  biased  advocates  of  "  private  enterprise 
always  shrewder  than  public  policy,"  whose 


2 


game  of  selling  out  and  ruining  the  State 
will,  like  murder,  out,  sooner  or  later,to  their 
disappointment  and  disgrace,  and  that  of 
all  those  who  aid  and  sympathize  with  them 
in  their  foul  attempts  at  a  most  foul  crime, 
to  sell  out  the  poor  old  State  and  make 
themselves  rich  by  her  poverty. 

My  purpose  is  to  invite  attention  to  the 
subject  of  paramount- importance  to  the  Re- 
publican party  as  well  as  the  State,  which 
will  be  held  responsible  for  the  action  of  the 
present  General  Assembly  iD  regard  to  the 
bill,  for  consolidation.  I  might  present  some 
facts,  perhaps,  arguments  in  favor  of  the 
matter,  but  I  believe  that  the  mind  of  the 
people  is  made  up,  and  that  consolidation  is 
soon  to  be  an  accomplished  fact.  No  mere 
objections  will  remove  the  force  of  an  irre- 
sistible conviction  that  the  State,  the  State 
itself  must. shape  and  control  its  own  works 
in  the  cheapest,  most  practicable  and  profi- 
table way,  by  using,  not  forcing;,  tliem  to 
develop  all  its  resources  of  agriculture, 
mining,  manufacturing  and  commerce,  the 
last  being  the  greatest  and  surest  means  to 
her  greatness  as  may  be  seen  from  every 
stand  point. 

No  intelligent  man  doubts,  or  needs  doubt, 
that  the  State  has  the  best  and  most  capa- 
cious  harbor  South  of  Cape  Henry.  No 
railroad  man  of  experience  and  disinterested 
mind  will  deny  that  the  railroads  when  con- 
solidated, can  be,  and  must  be  operated 
much  more  cheaply,  quickly  and  conveni 
ently  lor  transportation  of  things  and  per- 
sons. Each  corporation  separated  now, 
really  is  doing  as  profitable  and  as  great  an 
amount  of  transportation  as  the  sanguine 
friends  of  either  could  hope  for,  in  the  pres 
ent  state  of  the  country,  and  impoverished, 
condition  of  the  people.  The  prospects  of 
each  brighten  as  the  State  and  country  be- 
come settled,  and  trade  and  labor  resume 
their  wonted  ways.  They  cannot  lie  worked 
well  separately,  upon  any  system  yet  devised. 
of  contract  for  mutual  "  through  freight,," 
"through  trains,"  &c. 

In  this  connection  I  would  quote  the  con 
eluding  portion  of  the  Report  of  the  Presi- 
dent .and  Directors  of  the  Atlantic  &  N.  C. 
Railroad  Company  to  the  Stockholders  of 
that  Company  in  June,  1866,  in  support  of 
this  view  and  as  showing  the  views  of  dis 
interested  persons  in  relation  to  the  subject 
then : 

"Two  steamship  lines,  the  one  by  way  of 
Newbern,  the  other  by  way  of  Morehead 
City,  both  from  New*  York,  have  contributed 
largely  to  the  through  freight  of  the  road. 
These  steamship  lines  should  receive  en- 
couragement and  aid  from  both  the  North 
Carolina  Railroad  Company  and  your  own; 
because  in  the  opinion  of  the  Board  of 
Pirectors,  the  system  of  through  freight, 
from  New  York  especially,  to  the  interior 
of  the  State,  which    steam  vessels    will   best 


maintain  and  build  up,  is  that  system  upon 
which  the  North  Carolina  Railroad,  to  a 
large  degree,  and  the  Atlantic  and  North 
Carolina  Railroad,  almost  entirely,  must  de- 
pend for  future  success. 

"  Whilst  efforts  have  been  made  to  pro- 
mote safe,  expeditious  and  economical 
through  transportation,  by  agreements,  as 
to  "through  cars,"  "through  tariff  rates  " 
and  through  tickets,  on  the  part  of  both  the 
North  Carolina  Railroad  Company,  and 
the  Atlantic  and  North  Carolina  Railroad 
Company — these  efforts  have  been  attended 
with,  but  partial  good  results.  The  difficul-. 
ties  in  the  way  are  inherent  in  the  manage- 
ment of  separate  corporations,  i  The  two 
corporations  ought  to  lie  one.  And  the 
question  of  "consolidation,"  of  the  North 
Carolina  Railroad  and  the  Atlantic  and 
North  Carolina  Railroad,  is,  in  the  opinion 
of  the  Board  of  Directors,,  one  that  should 
receive  your  early  consideration.  Let  there 
be  a  conjunction  or  "consolidation"  of 
these  roads,  and  there  would  grow  an  united 
and  strengthened  interest  ,in  the  success  of 
the  entire  line,  as  one  line  ifrom  Charlotte 
to  Morehead  City.  The  stock  of  both. 
Companies  interested  would  be  appreciated, 
as  the  business  of  both  would  be  improved. 
Such  an  union  of  capital  and  interest  would 
stimulate  domestic  commerce — would  ulti- 
mately induce  foreign  commerce,  and  would 
greatly  advance  and  buihl  up  a  commercial, 
prosperity  for  North  Carolina,  without 
detriment  to  any  of  her  works  of  internal 
improvement. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

C.  R.  THOMAS,  President. 

The  then  President  and  Directors  were, 
in  no  wise  interested  in  any  local  question 
pertaining  to  the  management  of  a  consolida- 
ted Railroad — no  speculative  movement  or 
interest.  The  present  President  and  Direc- 
tors of  this  road  now  favor  the  same  general 
plan  and  purpose,  not  specially  for  their  sec- 
tion or  company,  or  either  corporation,  but 
tor  the  joint  advantage  of  the  Companies,  the 
State  and  its  whole  people.  They  have 
North  Carolina  "on  the  brain"  and  desire 
singly  to  promote  her  interest,  prosperity 
and  honor.  They  want  a  State — a  new 
North  Carolina  growing  in  consolidated  ma 
terial  wealth,  prosperity  and  glory — along 
with,  in  and  part  of  her  united,  great  and 
one  country.  May  they  live  to  witness  and 
enjoy  a  "consummation  devoutly  to  be 
wished"  by  every  North   Carolinian., 

All  the  objections  that  I  have  heard  or 
read,  as  urged  against  a  consolidation  of 
the  roads,  in  general,  apply  to  the  roads  un- 
der separate  management.  But  one  objec- 
tion is  urged  that  the  Atlantic  and  North 
Carolina  Railroad  would  be  a  "  dead 
weight"  to  carry.  This  is  an  assumption, 
if  not  a  misstatement,  made  from  ignorance 
of  the  operations  of  the  road  and  its  present 


3 


condition.  This  road,  (the  Atlantic  and 
North  Carolina  Railroad,)  has  been  doing, 
and  it  is  now  doing,  as  well  as  any  State 
road,  except  the  North  Carolina  Railroad, 
and  hut  for  the  unjust  discriminations  of  the 
latter  in  respect  to  other  roads,  would  do 
quite  as  we'd  as  any  road.  The  company 
now  owe  about  $250,000,  and  are  operating 
their  road,  at  this  nine,  so  as  to  l>e  able  to 
pay  the  interest  on  their  debt,  and  with  good 
prospect  of  doing  still  better. 

An  assumption  is  urged  that  the  consoli- 
dated company  would  operate  their  road  to 
force  freights,  &c,  over  their  line  by  unjust 
discriminations  aaainst  contiguous  lines  of 
road  The  idea  <>f  forcing  trade  is  obso- 
lete. Trade  will  go  where  capital  invites 
or  commands  it  to  go,  and  what  is 
wanted  by  us  now  is  consolidation  of  cap- 
ital and  influence  to  invite  and  command  it 
to  come  and  go  from  our  own  seaports.  A 
home  market  wherein  as  in  Northern  cities, 
the  products  of  agriculture,  of  manufactu- 
ring, «fec,  may  be  purchased  as  cheaply  as 
from  the  original  place  of  their  growth  or 
making,  as  is  often  done — and  wherein  our 
own  industry  may  find  protection  and  aid, 
is  needed.  "Consolidation"  will  give  it, 
sooner  or  later,  to  the  State,  and  it  will  give 
also  increased  profits  and  advantages  to  all 
her  people  who  are  especially  as  tax-payers 
deeply  interested  in  the  matter.  If  the  N. 
C.  Railroad  Company  has  declared  a  divi- 
dend of  $180,000  from  the  operations  of  175 


miles  of  their  road,  it  will  at  least  be  able 
to  declare  a  dividend  of  $328,000  from  the 
operations  ot  319  miles  of  consolidated  road 
to  the  State,  which  amount  might  be  relied 
upon  for  the  payment  of  the  expenditures  of 
the  State  government,  as  in  Georgia  and 
other  States.  From  every  $5,80  of  profit  made 
by  a  consolidated  road  the  State  would 
receive  $4,36,  and  no  giving  or  lending 
of  the  credit  of  the  State  would  probably  be 
needed  in  future  by  such  a  corporation,  so 
united  and  strengthened  as  it  would  be 
by  consolidation.  No  outlay  of  money 
would  be  required  by  reason  of  such  consoli- 
dation for  the  purpose  of  securing  better 
steamers  than  have  heretofore  been  had. 
These  steamers  of  as  good  class  and  capacity 
as  carry  between  New  York  and  any  place 
South  of  there  would  be  commanded  at  once, 
and  such  a  number  would  be  put  on  as  to 
afford  daily,  certainly  tri-weekly  transpor- 
tation. 

I  write  what,  I  am  assured,  is  true,  that  by 
means  of  consolidation,  transportation  in 
and  out  would  be  done  more  cheaply,  at  less 
rates  of  insurance  and  of  freight,more  quickly 
and  more  certainly  than  ever  before  in  the 
history  of  our  State  Railroads.  And  facili- 
ties for  transportation  so  gained  would  be 
maintained,  enlarged  and  improved  to  the 
general  profit  and  advantage  of  every  inter- 
est of  the  State. 

A  Friend  of  Internal  Improvement. 


Date  Due 

| 

—    *\5k(\  O  **  * 

Library  Bureau  Cat.  no.  1137 

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CALL  NUMBER 


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Date  (for  periodical) 


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